Brit police watchdog says cops' use of facial recog risks wrongful arrests
UK police forces must do more to prevent the wrongful arrests of people subjected to retrospective facial recognition (RFR) searches, according to a Criminal Justice Inspectorate that holds deep concerns about the way in which the technology is used.
Key points
- "Police forces must be able to show that appropriate safeguards are in place, risks relating to bias and data retention are effectively managed, and decisions are still subject to human judgment," she said.
- HMICFRS also said the rules governing each force's use of RFR are mismatched, and called for a statutory code to be included in the forthcoming Police Reform Bill to set nationwide standards.
- According to a report from His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), there is a large gap in understanding among police forces and the National Crime Agency about how RFR should be used in responsible policing.
It pointed to a lack of bespoke legislation to provide a uniform approach to police facial recognition use – and said existing laws have not kept pace with the technology.
Additional details
- Illustrating the breadth of misunderstanding across forces, the report noted that despite the message being routinely communicated by National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) reps, individual investigators "often" thought RFR results constituted evidence rather than intelligence.
- Kathryn Stone, his majesty's inspector at HMICFRS, said facial recognition has transformed policing, allowing officers to compare images in seconds, allowing them to solve crimes more quickly, but echoed the report's main concerns.
- The onus for taking action should also be placed on the police forces themselves, given that some lack formal procedures regarding how RFR enquiries should be carried out, the report noted.
- Home Office figures released on Thursday to complement the report show similar positivity toward the technology among police officers, with only 4 percent reporting a negative experience.
- However, the inspectorate clarified that just because an arrest is made, it does not necessarily mean it is wrongful, as investigators may need to rule out subjects from their inquiries.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
Advertisement
Every article behind this summary — 1 article from 1 outlet
Get stories like this in your inbox.
Subscribe — it's freeOne free email at 6am — your topics, deduplicated, five minutes. No account, no paywall.